Refractory structure



Nov. 18, 1930. F. L. ARENSBERG ETAL 1,783,023

REFRAQTORY STRUCTURE Filed Feb. 8, 1929 Patented Nov. 18, 1930 UNITED STAT S Hints, FENNSYLVANIA,,fiSSIGNGRS ro PATENT oFFi-cE :nn-nivcrsqr... ARENSBERG, 0F PITTSBURGH, AND RTHUR J. AeKMAn, on ronns'r Vesuvius cn'ucIBLEcoMrAnY, or SWISS- VALEEENNSYLVANIA, CORPOEATION OF, PElqNSY- JVANIA.

. nnr'nncrony swnucrnnn Applicationi'ilidFebruary s, 1929. Serial No. 338,459.

structures for use-infurnace linings. It relates still more particularly to a composite refractory brickfor furnace linings.

Refractory brick such assilica'brick, fire clay brick, chrome-brick, etc, are:used' eX- tensively for furnace linings ,ofvarious types.

:Itis commonknowledge. that refractory brick of this kind when: subjected to longexposu-re to'heat oratointermittent heating and cooling, break off and spall at their faces which I are exposed to the heat of the interior of the furnace. The brickusually break off or spall .along planes which are generally. parallel to their exposed faces.

Spalling ;has been attributed to various causes such as "tothermalstressesand to physical changes in structure which occur in heating, such, for example, as the change in crystalline structure of a sillcabrick from -quartz to cristobalite, when exposed to high heat for a'considerable period of time. :The bricksiwhen built into a furnace lining, such as that, of a furnace wall or roof, are laid brick into its body. Since the brick are built 7 into a wall or roof, the isothermal planes in a brick are-substantiallyparallel to'its exposed face. In'spalling, the cleavage planesin 'general tend to run along the direction of the isothermal planes, permittingthe exposed face of the brickto spall or breakoffa The changes in crystalline. structure-fin the brick take place fromthe face 'ofthevbrick back intorits body- .When a change inthe crystalline structure takes place, as, for ex ample, the change from quartz to cristobalite in silica brick, the change begins at the face of the brick and progresses in toward its body so that the plane or planes which define the border line between the advancing crystalline change and the body of the brick will lie substantially; as do the isothermal planes,that

is, generally parallel to the face of the brick.

surfaces "surrounding the rods.

These planes of demarkation between ;the

crystalline materialsof different character tend to form a cleavage plane along-which the spalling crcracking tends to occur.

Inthe copending application of Arthur J.

Jackman and CharlesiL. Jones, SerialNo. 281,636, filed May 31,1928, it [isdisclosed beprevented or minimized whenfthe brick are used for. furnace linings by forming a composite brick in which'a refractory nonmetallic element of relatively good heat conducting material. is. combined with. the: body of the gbrick whichis of relativelypoor-heat conducting material.

a refractory structure isdisclosed in which the heat conducting elements areimade in that the spalling of refractory brick .may

.165 In the said application Serial No. 281,636,

the form of rods which lie in'a direction generally normal to. the exposed surface-of the brick so as to conduct'the heat fromthe exposed surface into the body of the brickIand into the furnace wall. Theseheat conducting rods serve to conductand diffuse the heat into the bodyof the brick and flatten out the temperature gradient which would otherwise be steep in the material of the brick near its exposed face. They therefore minimize the thermal stresses. "The cond-u'cting rodsvalso change the shape of the isothermalplanesfrom fiat planes lying parallel-to the exposed face of the brick into generally conical Since :the cleavage planes due to thermal stresses and to changes in crystalline structurelie along.

isothermal planes, these cleavage planes are likewise changed from flat planes parallel to and near the exposedfaces of the brick into planes of 'a generally conicalshapesurrounding the rods and extending wellinto the body of. thebrick. Therefore 1f cracking should occur along such planes, there. isless liability of the falling away of the material,

since a piece of material of generallyconical and near the exposed face of the brick.

The present invention is-inthe natureof an improvement over that disclosed in the said application Serial No. 281,636. It aims to provide a refractory structure and a refractory brick even more resistant to spalling and also having greater structural strength. We provide a refractory structure comprising materials of different degrees of susceptibility to spelling, one face of the structure I 'beln redominantl of materialfof relative- 1y less susceptibility to spalling, th e ratio of such material to material of relatively greater susceptibility to spallingdecreasing progressively in the direction of the depth of the structure. We further provide a composite brick con'iprising portions of different thermal conductivities joined along a surface extending generally diagonally of the brick.

' We have found that the tendency towardspalling is greatly reduced-when a composite structure is provided having its inner face composed predominantly, and preferably substantially entirely, of a material having agreater thermal conductivity or less susceptibility to spalling than the material making up the remainder of the body of the struc ture. lVhen the inner face of the structure is composed predominantly of such a material, the material having the greater susceptibility to spalling is exposed'very little, if at all, to the heat of the interior of the furnace. Furthermore, the material which is most likelyto spall is protected and positively held in the structure b y'a. layer of thematerial having less susceptibility to spalling so that it is necessary for such outer pro-.

tective layer to be first disintegrated or spalled before it is possible for any of the backing material to drop 0d.

The surface of uncture between the respective portions of the composite structure extends through the structure generally at an angle to its surface. The isothermal planes are therefore irregularly arranged with respect to the surface of the structure, greatly reducing the inherent tendency toward spalling. Not only is the natural tendency toward cleavage less, but on account of the positive protection of the outer layer of material having less susceptibility to spelling, the

possibility of pieces of the backing material dropping ofi into the furnace is remote until the protective layer has first been removed.

The structure herein disclosed has a further advantage in that portions of the material of less susceptibility to spalling, which material structural; strength, may extend from top to bottom of V is also generally of greater the structure to provide, in effect, supporting columns. This is impossible when rods are provided which extend into the structure generally normal to its inner face. structure, provided is much less expensive than one composed entirely of high-priced non-spalling refractory brick, and further- -more has the advantage that it is insulated The .of a furnace wall structure somewhat different from that shown in-Figure 3;

Figures 5,6, 7 and 8 are perspective views of modifications ofthe invention; and

Figure 9 is a top plan view of acrucible furnace lining.

Referring more particularly to the draw- 7 ings,-reference numeral 2 designates generally a furnace arch made up of composlte bricks each having a portion 3 of relatively non-spelling material and a portion 4 of or-' dinary refractory material. The portions 3 and 4 are joined along surfaces extending generally diagonally ofthe bricks and also extending back at an angle from the lower surface of the arch. The portions 4 are provided with projections 5' fitting into recesses 6 in the portions 3 to assist in lockingthe portions together and preventing relative movement thereof along the surfaces of juncturedue to the pressure exerted thereon by the Weight of the structure. The portions 3 cover substantially the entire lower face of V the arch, thus. protecting the portions 4 and preventing them from spalling. 1

The portions 3 are of greater thermalcon ductivity than the portions 4 and conduct the heat of the furnace well into the wall. The temperature gradient is comparatively steep as compared with that in a wall of ordinary refractory material but is'muchless so than that in a wall made up entirely of non-spalling super-refractory. On account of the fact that portions of each material project well into the body of the wall structure composed'predominantly of the other material, the'isothermal or cleavage planes are irregularly arranged and the tendency towards spalling thus greatly reduced.

In Figure 2 is'shown a composite brick made up of a portion? of relatively nonspalling material and a portion 8 of ordinary refractory material. The portions 7 and 8 are-joined along a surface extending generally diagonally of the brick. The surface of juncture is wavy to reduce to a certain extent the possibility of relative move ment between'the respective portions of the mzaaoes .13

@brick under pressure. The brick :may be molded and 'Ffiredwtohform the composite structure :as; a unit; or: the respective portions thereof-may be fired separately aandsuitably- ;bonded together. p

In Figure 3 is shown a portion o-fa furnaceawall made up of a composite structure.

rior. of the-wall :are'of. relatively non-spall- .ing.materialsandthe portions facing in the :oppositedirection are-of ordinary refracwtory; material. Thejoints between the bricks .are :staggeredin a the vertical direction.

In .Flgure 4 1s shown astructure similar 'to that' o'fFi gure 3 but whereinthe joints are not staggered in .a vertical direction. This provides" for. columns of the relatively .Jnon-spalling material which, as above stated,

' also has greater structural strength than the zo'ordinary refractory material, such columns extending from top to bottomofthe fur name and; assisting in supporting Sit. on the otherhand; the isothermal surfaces are bro- .ken up to agreater extent in-the construc- 1511:1011 shown in Figure 3 so that in sucha ewhich-the invention mayassu-me. .Inall of 130 such r'formsthe surfaces of juncture between the respective portions ofthez-briclc extend 1 generally diagonallythereof. r

' IntF'gure'Q is shown acrucible furnace lining'made upiofcomposite-bricks. iEachwof 135 these bricks comprises anzi'nner portion; 9 of relatively non-spalling. material :and an outer portion 2 10 of. ordinary refractory material.

heretofore to employ crucible furnace linings spalling material on account of the tremendous heat lossthrough the walls, resulting '45 in a great Waste of fuel and over-heating of. the surrounding air in the fonndry, result-.

ing in uncomfortable working conditions. It has not proved practicable to employ a hlghly refractory facing wlth an insulating backing in such a furnace because within the limited space available, the highly refractory lining must be made so thin that it does not possess adequate mechanical strength. By the use of the composite structure shown in Figure 9, such a furnace may be lined at a little more than half the cost of a highly refractory lining with insulation afforded by The bricks maybe made in various shapes other than the usual rectangular brick that the refractory furnace wall shall not such p o'rtions to spall and? drop into the furpleted furnace wall.

conduct too much heat, andffor this reason it 7 ingr materiaL. Also thematerial of the: heat I conducting portions is "usually more expen- ;sive than thatof the ordinary refractory ma- Fterial, and; forthatyreasona; large: percentage The portions of the bricks facingzthe inte of ordinary refractory-material; is preferred. The relatively highly refractory or non- 1 wspalling material is preferably silicon car- 7 bide, althoughiother :materials. or;v mixtures.

of silicon carbide} and other materials *may also be used. ;When1the respective portions of the refractory: structure are f bonded 1; to-

,-ing' agents-may be: used.

"WVhen a furnace-wall constructed as above 'j, :@leSCIlb6d has been in usefor-a considerable period of time, the inner surface of; compar-..;

lSO

atively n'on-spalling material will? ultimately wear away and-'spall off. i Owing to thefact ,thatthe ordinary refractory material lying :behind the comparatively nonspalling mate- :rial has wedge shapeda portions extending toward the innersurface, of the furnace wall,

.. only small; portions-1 of such material will be subjected-to the direct action of thegintense heat within the furnace. The tendency of nace is'reducedrby reason of theWe'dging-ac tion-exerted-jby the gradually diminishing body of comparativelynon-spellingmaterial at the; inside of .the' lining. Consequently, spalling Willnot'occur at a substantially greaterrate than the ratevof spalling of the highly refractory materialeven-though small The invention :as applied to a crucible lining. such as that shown in F igure=9:has peculiar advantagesfflt has 1 not been practicable areas of .the ordinary refractorymaterial may become subj ected directly tothe furnace heat, The rate offspallingwill increase somefwhat asthe proportioniofcomparatively nonmade up entirely of super-refractory or nonspalling material decreases, but the wedgi'ng effect of such material upon theordinary re- ,A. composite brick has heretoforefbeen .lrnown which comprises a portion of ordinary refractory material and a portion of comparatively non s'palling material joined along :aplane generally parallel tov a face, of a the brick, and-"intended to be disposed gener ally parallel to the inner face of the com- Suchbrick, however, have been found unsatisfactory onaccount of "the high rate of spalling due, to the fact that the isothermal or cleavageplanes are sub stantially continuous and extend generally the ordinary refractory material which prevents an excessive heat loss through the lininfthe same direction parallel to the inner face ofthe furnace walhjand'also due'to the the respective materials of which "the brick aremade, have aten'dency toi coincide with V tion of the other; 7

While we have shown and described certain present preferred embodiments of the invention, it is to be distinctly understoodquickly under these conditions, which, among others, it is a purpose of the present-invention to obviate. While a superficial resemblance exists between the two brick struc tures composed of different materials joined together, yet their functions are quite the opposite, the one serving to prevent the condition brought about by reason of the construc:

that the same is not limited thereto but may be otherwise variously embodied within the scope of the following claims.

We claim: 7 s

1. A refractory structure comprising materials of different degrees of susceptibility to spalling, one face of the structure being predominantly of material of relatively less susceptibility to spalling, the ratio of such material to material 'ofrelatively greater susceptibility to spalling decreasing progressively and substantially continuously throughout a substantial portion of the structure in the direction of its depth.

2. A refractory structure comprising materials of different thermal conductivities, one

face of the structure being predominantly of material of higher thermal conductivity, the ratio of such material to material of lower thermal conductivity decreasing progressively and substantially continuously throughout a substantial portion of the structure in the direction of its depth.

3. A refractory structure having one face predominantly of one material and the opposite face predominantly of another material, theratio of the first mentioned material to the second mentioned material decreasing progressively and substantially uniformly in the direction of the depth of the structure.

4. A refractory structure. having one face predominantly of one material, the structure being comprised of such, material and another material relatively more susceptible to spalling, the ratio of the first mentioned materialto the second mentioned material decreasing progressively and substantially continuously throughout a substantial portion of the structure in the direction of its depth.

. 5. A refractory structure comprising materials of different thermal conductivities, one

. 'i joined along a surface extending generally diagonally of the brick from adjacent one corner to adjacent the opposite corner.

7. -A composite brick comprising portions of diflerent thermal conductivities joined along an irregular surface extending generally from the vicinity of one 1 corner of the brick to the vicinity of the opposite corner thereof. A

8. A composite brick comprising portions of different thermal conductivities joined along a surface extending generally from the vicinity of a c'ornerof the brick to the vicinity of the opposite corner, and means to interlock such portions.

9. A composite solid face predominantly of one material, such material becoming less in proportion to anothermaterial in the direction of the depth of the brick from such facev substantially continuously throughout a substantial portion thereof. I

10. A refractory structure comprising portions of different refractory materials molded together, the relative proportions of such materials in the direction of the depth of the structure varying substantially continu-- ously. I V v 11. Arefractory structure comprising. generally similar integral generally taperedrelements of difierent refractory "materials con-' nected together." I

12. A refractory structure comprising. a

pairof integral elements'of different refractory materials connected together the crosssectional area of one material increasing and that of the other material decreasing with respect to one dimension of the structure.

In testimony whe'reofwe have hereunto set our hands.

FRANCIS L. ARENSBERG. ARTHUR J. JACKMAN.

brick comprising a 

